


Sick Demons

by jimalim320



Category: Jarchie, Jughead x Archie, Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: College AU, Fluff, M/M, One Shot, Sick Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-20
Updated: 2018-04-20
Packaged: 2019-04-25 10:35:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14376855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jimalim320/pseuds/jimalim320
Summary: A short Jarchie sick fic. Archie is sick, Jughead attempts to take care of him. It's pure fluff really. Set somtime in their college years.





	Sick Demons

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Toryb](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Toryb/gifts).



> Based of a comment Tori made in a Tumblr headcanon post. Loved the line and couldn't get it out of my head.

"Arch!..." Jughead Jones yells across the empty cavern of the small one-bedroom apartment her shared with his boyfriend Archie Andrews. He just got home from his afternoon class and wanted to take his man out for an early dinner before Archie had to take off for his evening class. When no reply came his way, Jughead called out once again, moving through the small room, down the hall.    
"Arch!?"   
  
_Surely, he's home_ Jughead thinks. Archie usually takes this time of day, while Jughead's in class, to work on his music because, as much as Jughead loves hearing his boyfriend play, hearing him repeat the same three chords and choppy unfinished lyrics over and over again before grunting out in frustration cause it's _just. not. right._ can be too much to handle sometimes. Especially when he's trying to work through that pesky writer’s block that never seems to evade him. _This novel will never be finished._ When there's no sound of a guitar strum, Jug begins to wonder if he isn't actually home.  
  
It's not until he enters their bedroom that Jughead realizes why he wasn't greeted with his typical welcome home kiss and Archie's signature goofy grin. Currently Archie is knocked out, face down on the bed, surrounded by balled up Kleenex, with a bottle of cough medicine sitting open on the bedside table. The comforte- _duvet_ he internally corrects himself, _("what the hell is a duvet?" "I don't know Jug, but it sounds fancy. Come on, we have to make the place look nice!")_ is tucked up around Archie's sleeping figure, nothing but the top of his head exposed.  
  
It's a rather cute sight, if not for all the evidence of gross germs surrounding him. Jughead, as much as he loves snuggling up with his boyfriend, thinks he might have to sleep on the couch tonight. Midterms are coming up and he cannot afford to get sick right now. He makes his way to the side of the bed, closing the bottle of Nyquil, _no wonder he's asleep that lovable fool._ Jughead places a gentle hand on Archie's forehead, checking for a fever. He's warm, but not enough for it to be alarming. _That’s a good sign at least._ He runs his fingers through Archie's hair, coming back the sweaty locks so they are out of his face. All the while Archie doesn't move, his breathing steady and low.  
  
Jughead knows it's best to let Archie sleep so he has a quicker chance of recovery. He's not exactly the doting type either, unlike Archie who waits on Jughead hand and foot when he's sick. So, Jughead reluctantly cleans up the mess of used tissues. Followed by a serious hand washing session, _begone sick demons!_ before retiring to the living room. He decides to take the down time to work on some homework. Nothing real exciting, just a couple of papers and some light textbook reading. Might as well take advantage of the silence. Eventually he orders some food for the both of them, although he's not sure if Archie will be able to stomach anything solid when he wakes up.   
  
He gets about three pages into his philosophy paper rough draft, and through two take out containers before the sound of muttered moaning breaks the quiet atmosphere he'd been submerged in for almost two hours now. _"I just want to breathe!"_ Rings out from the bedroom, and Jughead has to stifle his laugh. He really does feel bad for him, but Archie whining like this is always funny.   
  
"Hey there stuffy head." Jughead teases as he enters their bedroom, getting his first real look at sick Archie who is no longer cloaked by blankets.   
  
Archie rolls over to face the doorway where the teasing voice of his boyfriend came from, groaning all the while. "I'm skipping class."  
  
Jughead laughs at Archie's weak tone of voice, it’s too cute. "I sure hope so. Those kids don't need you infecting them right before midterms, and neither do I." He throws a handful of fresh tissues over Archie's body, "begone sick demons!" He voices aloud this time, which causes Archie to laugh himself into a fit of coughs.  
  
Jughead runs out of the room, returning moments later with a glass of water, which Archie gratefully accepts, downing the whole thing in mere seconds. "Thanks, Juggie."   
  
"I've got some soup for you, isn't that the customary gesture when people are sick?" Jughead offers as he sits on the edge of the bed. Acting nurse ha never been Jughead’s forte luckily for him, Archie rarely gets sick due to good genes or some other bullshit Archie always brags about. In a way it’s kind of satisfying seeing Archie suffer a bit _like the rest of us humans_ , but Jughead’s heart also aches at seeing his boy in pain.  
  
Archie groans and buries his face into the pillow. "Can't eat now. Maybe later." His appetite left him long ago, replaced with uneasy nausea.  
  
"Alright, but you really should try to eat something before you pass out again, and maybe next time don't take Nyquil in the middle of the day." He laughs once again at Archie's mistake. Poor guy must have been feeling it bad.  
  
" _Shut uuuup,"_ Archie whines as he makes a meek attempt to swat Jughead's arm. He doesn’t even come close to making contact. "It's all we have in the cabinet."  
  
Jughead gets up to confirm Archie's statement, looking through the rather barren medicine cabinet behind the bathroom mirror, nothing but some toothpaste, two toothbrushes, and an old shaving kit to be found. "I’ll run to the pharmacy in a few, but first _eat!_ " He gets up from the bed taking Archie's hands in his own and helps the sick lug off the mattress. He ushers him into the kitchen and orders him to sit at the small island while he goes about reheating the small container of soup he ordered earlier.   
  
"Isn't it so messed up how we take our nose for granted? Like we have this thing that we don't even notice 98% of the time but it's essential to our day to day life, and the _moment_ it gets clogged we're suddenly really fucking aware and there's nothing we can do about it except let it run its course." Archie rants, his words getting caught here and there do to the lack of oxygen passing through his nostril.   
  
Jughead grins at Archie's adorable outburst. He's sure it was intended to come off with more anger, but the little hiccups totally undermined all of that. "Jeez Arch, you make it sound like some kind of conspiracy theory."  
  
_"Isn't it though!?"_ Archie exasperatedly exclaims.  
  
Jughead recoils a bit, but ultimately laughs. "How much medicine did you take?"  
  
Archie shrugs. "Maybe a little more than the recommended dose, but I need to get better Juggie. You said it yourself, with midterms coming up I can't be sick."  
  
"Taking more isn't going to help. You usually have to just let these things work themselves out. Getting a lot of sleep, drink lots of fluids, _eating_ ," Jughead emphasizes as he pushes the bowl of soup across the counter in front if Archie, "is the best way to a speedy recovery." Jughead might not be the greatest caretaker, but he’s been sick enough times in his life to know when it comes to the respiratory system, there’s not much one can do in the ways of medication/quick fix remedies to cure a common cold.  
  
"Ugh, I know you're right." Archie solemnly admits as he picks up the spoon.  
  
Jughead grins. "When am I not?"   
  
Archie looks up but doesn't say anything due to the spoonful of soup in his mouth, but his glare is enough to express it all. _Don't push me. I might be sick, but I can still take you._  
  
Jughead throws his hands up in mock surrender. He rounds the corner of the island so he's on the same side as Archie. He puts an arm around Archie's shoulder for a moment before moving to cradle Archie's head, pulling him into his chest. Jughead places a lingering kiss to his temple. "Keep eating, I'm gonna run to the pharmacy." He squeezes Archie's shoulder, gently massaging at the knot in the back of his neck.   
  
Archie hums in reply, the action really making a difference in his physical state. When Jughead begins to slip away, Archie places his hand over Jug's. "No don't stop yet." Jughead smiles, _the pharmacy can wait._ He uses both hands to work out all the tension in Archie's shoulders and upper back while Archie continues to eat, his appetite slowly coming back to him.   
  
"I know you don't want to get sick, but can I kiss you?" Archie softly pleas. They haven't properly kissed all day. Jughead had morning class so he got up before Archie, only placing a quick kiss to his temple before leaving for the day, and since Archie wasn't awake to give Jughead his usual welcome home kiss went he got back from class, it's been a dry day.  
  
"You won't be offended when I immediately go brush my teeth after?" Jughead jokes but also in all seriousness.  
  
Archie shakes his head no, and he reaches an arm around his boyfriend's waist, pulling him closer into his side, still sitting on the chair with Jughead standing next to him. Jughead leans down and meets Archie's lips with timid trepidation at first, as if he could somehow avoid the germs that way, but promptly follows through with more fluid movements of lips and tongue. _Ah who gives a shit about germs?_ His hands rest a top Archie's shoulders, but he slowly trails one down his torso landing on his solid abdomen. Archie pulls away with a lazy smile, happy to have finally got his fix. While he'd much prefer more, he knows this hit will have to hold him over until he is in better health. Plus, he can't exactly breathe properly to sustain any kind of physical activity longer than a few seconds.   
  
Jughead kisses Archie's forehead real quick before bounding off to the bathroom to rinse his mouth and brush his teeth. He figures he’s most likely already been exposed to the virus long enough at this point it probably wouldn't matter anyway, but it never hurts to be extra careful! When he returns to the kitchen Archie had already cleaned up the kitchen and Jughead fills with appreciation.   
  
After watching tv for a couple hours, between nose blowing and pointed jokes, they decide to call it a night. Jughead takes a quick shower before bed, another effort to keep the sick away. He enters their bedroom a few minutes later only to be surprised by a makeshift bed made from the couch cushions on the floor next to Archie's side of the bed. "You were gonna sleep on the couch anyway, I thought we could at least make it fun, like old times?" Archie recalls the month or so Jughead lived with the Andrews, sharing his room while his dad was away, the not so innocent sleepovers they had before becoming romantically involved. Jughead stares at Archie with the sincerest love drunk eyes, and the sly smirk on his face let's Archie know he's recalling the same memories. Then a couple of teenage boys, struggling through high school, navigating friends and family, discovering and exploring truths about themselves that they didn't quite understand at the time.

Jughead reflects on how far they've come from those clueless kids in just the few years that's passed. Who would have thought a cynic like him would end up here? In love with his best friend, the good ole boy, the heart of Riverdale High. He wasn't sure what he did to get here or why he deserved such a love, because even in his sickest, most whiney mood, Archie was still the greatest boyfriend anyone could ask for. Little gestures like this proved just that. And while Jughead might not be the most duteous of caretakers when it comes to sickness, little did he know Archie felt the same way. 

**Author's Note:**

> Go follow Tori on tumblr: @tory-b and make sure to check out her fics! She's a wonderful writer!  
> And you can follow me too @jimalim if y'all want!


End file.
